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    Be Concerned (Minor Prophets): Making a Difference in Your Lifetime
    Be Concerned (Minor Prophets): Making a Difference in Your Lifetime
    Be Concerned (Minor Prophets): Making a Difference in Your Lifetime
    Ebook209 pages3 hours

    Be Concerned (Minor Prophets): Making a Difference in Your Lifetime

    By Warren W. Wiersbe

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    About this ebook

    The truth in God’s word illuminates the sinful state of our fallen world. And throughout history that insight has moved believers from conviction to action, to share His truth with a world in need, to burden us with a deep concern for people. But how can we translate that concern into effective ministry? The prophets Amos, Obadiah, Micah, and Zephaniah were each called to deal courageously and honestly with the sin around them. This study explores how their concern for people shaped their life-changing messages of repentance and redemption.

    Part of Dr. Warren W. Wiersbe’s best-selling “BE” commentary series, BE Concerned has now been updated with study questions and a new introduction by Ken Baugh. A respected pastor and Bible teacher, Dr. Wiersbe encourages us to take a balanced approach to personal evangelism, and challenges us to lovingly share truths that offer both conviction and hope.
     

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherDavid C Cook
    Release dateMay 15, 2013
    ISBN9780781405607
    Be Concerned (Minor Prophets): Making a Difference in Your Lifetime
    Author

    Warren W. Wiersbe

    Warren W. Wiersbe, former pastor of the Moody Church and general director of Back to the Bible, has traveled widely as a Bible teacher and conference speaker. Because of his encouragement to those in ministry, Dr. Wiersbe is often referred to as "the pastor’s pastor." He has ministered in churches and conferences throughout the United States as well as in Canada, Central and South America, and Europe. Dr. Wiersbe has written over 150 books, including the popular BE series of commentaries on every book of the Bible, which has sold more than four million copies. At the 2002 Christian Booksellers Convention, he was awarded the Gold Medallion Lifetime Achievement Award by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association. Dr. Wiersbe and his wife, Betty, live in Lincoln, Nebraska.

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      Be Concerned (Minor Prophets) - Warren W. Wiersbe

      Extras

      The Big Idea

      An Introduction to Be Concerned

      by Ken Baugh

      Once every three months or so we have a newcomer meeting at the church where I serve as pastor, and normally twenty-five to thirty people attend who don’t know each other at all. I begin the meeting by suggesting that we go around the room and have each person share with the others their worst sin—you know, to help us get to know you a little better. Usually everyone laughs, and the joke serves as a good icebreaker.

      But we all know that sin is no laughing matter, don’t we? And none of us would want to go around a room filled with even our closest friends, let alone strangers, and truly share our worst sins. We don’t share our sins with others. Instead, we hide them—we lock them up deep within the confines of our hearts. We even think we can hide our sins from God, which is silly if you stop and think about it, because God knows everything—even the secret sins of the heart. God sees every sin and knows every evil thought and yet stays His hand of judgment and discipline for a season, offering us the opportunity to repent.

      But when God’s people don’t repent, He must bring about discipline, sometimes severe, in order to bring them to repentance. This is the ongoing narrative that runs throughout the Old Testament: God’s people sin, God brings about His discipline in the form of judgment, God’s people repent, and then God is faithful to forgive and restore. We see this pattern played out over and over again in the lives of the Israelites.

      The prophets are God’s messengers who deliver the bad news of coming judgment for sin. They warn, Be concerned, people, because God sees your sins, and His judgment is coming if you don’t repent. This is the message of the prophets and is the Big Idea woven throughout the books of Amos, Obadiah, Micah, and Zephaniah. Their twofold message is an admonition of coming judgment and the willingness of God to forgive.

      Here is the truth about sin: It is always followed by consequences. At the bottom of every temptation to sin, there is written in fine print: Warning, God is a holy God and therefore must discipline His people when they sin. Boy, do I know all about that.

      When I was seventeen years old, I began a four-year binge on sin. It began innocently enough when I decided to date an unbeliever. I blew off the whole unequally yoked thing (2 Cor. 6:14), thinking that I would be the one to beat the odds. I set out on a missionary dating campaign with the best intentions to win her to Christ. However, over time, my girlfriend lost interest in the faith in spite of my best efforts, and I began to compromise my biblical values. That relationship ended after a couple of years, but my downward spiral into sin continued. As the years progressed, so did my sin of promiscuity, until one day I came face-to-face with a severe consequence: an unplanned pregnancy terminated by abortion. Here is the ugly truth about me: I am the accomplice to the murder of an unborn child. As I sit here and write these words, it is still hard for me to believe.

      A few days after the abortion, I was sitting on the beach asking myself how I got into this pit of sin, and I cried out to God for His forgiveness. God forgave me the moment I confessed my sin (1 John 1:9), but the consequences linger even to this day, some twenty-five years later, and no doubt will remain for the rest of my life. It’s true that I am free from the guilt, shame, and condemnation of my sin (Rom. 8:1), but it’s also true that my sin left deep emotional scars of regret that remind me that I am simply a man saved by grace.

      I guess I have shared with you my worst sin after all, just as the prophets Amos, Obadiah, Micah, and Zephaniah share with us the worst sins of the Israelites. But as you read through these books, don’t miss God’s promise to His people (and to you): Even though they have sinned, forgiveness and restoration are only a prayer away. I don’t know if you have ever shared your worst sin with someone, but I urge you to share it at least with God through a prayer of confession. Ask Him to forgive you, ask Him to cleanse you, and tell Him you are sorry and desire to walk in newness of life. God promises to hear the prayer of a broken and contrite heart (Ps. 51:17 NIV). He promises to forgive your sin, restore your relationship with Him, and provide the strength to endure whatever consequences ensue.

      ***

      Dr. Wiersbe’s commentaries have been a source of guidance and strength to me over the many years that I have been a pastor. His unique style is not overly academic, but theologically sound. He explains the deep truths of Scripture in a way that everyone can understand and apply. Whether you’re a Bible scholar or a brand-new believer in Christ, you will benefit, as I have, from Warren’s insights. With your Bible in one hand and Dr. Wiersbe’s commentary in the other, you will be able to accurately unpack the deep truths of God’s Word and learn how to apply them to your life.

      Drink deeply, my friend, of the truths of God’s Word, for in them you will find Jesus Christ, and there is freedom, peace, assurance, and joy.

      —Ken Baugh

      Pastor of Coast Hills Community Church

      Aliso Viejo, California

      A WORD FROM THE

      AUTHOR

      This is one of three volumes of the Minor Prophets in the BE series, dealing with Amos, Obadiah, Micah, and Zephaniah. The first volume, Be Amazed, covers Hosea, Joel, Jonah, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Malachi; and the other volume, Be Heroic, covers the post-exilic prophets—Haggai and Zechariah—along with the book of Ezra.

      The Minor Prophets may be minor in size, as compared with Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, but they certainly aren’t minor in their message. These men dealt courageously with the sins of God’s people, warning them that chastening judgments would come if the people didn’t repent and turn to God. But they were also tenderhearted in their message of forgiveness and hope.

      In the words of Paul, these prophets proclaimed the goodness and severity of God (Rom. 11:22), a balanced message that we need to hear today. In our pluralistic society, some preachers and teachers try so hard to be politically correct that they end up with no message at all, while others fail to understand the mind-set of their hearers and fail to get through. The prophets made neither mistake; and we can learn from them how best to declare God’s truth so that the message reaches the mind and heart of each listener and motivates the will.

      Having heard these messages, we need to act upon them and obey what God tells us to do. The great need of the hour is for the company of the concerned to follow Christ and accomplish His will in this needy world. Will you be among them?

      —Warren W. Wiersbe

      Amos in His Time

      Amos (burden bearer) was a herdsman and a cultivator of sycamore trees (Amos 1:1; 7:14) when the Lord called him to be a prophet. He lived in the village of Tekoa, about eleven miles from Jerusalem, during the reigns of Uzziah in Judah (790–740 BC) and Jeroboam II in the northern kingdom of Israel (793–753). Amos was a layman, a humble farmer and shepherd who was not an official member of the Jewish religious or political establishment.

      At this time, both Judah and Israel were enjoying prosperity and security. Luxury abounded (3:10–15; 5:1–6), and religion was popular. Israel flocked to the royal chapel at Bethel (4:4–5), and Judah celebrated the feasts enthusiastically (5:21–22), but the sins of both nations were eroding the religious and moral fiber of the people. Making money was more important than worshipping God (8:5); the rich exploited the poor, the judicial system was corrupt, and injustice flourished (5:11–15; 8:4–6).

      Amos declared God’s judgment not only on the Gentile nations but also on Israel and Judah. It was a call to repent of ritual religion and seek the Lord sincerely. He warned the aristocrats that God would judge them for the way they were abusing the poor. In spite of the nations’ peace and prosperity, Amos saw the end coming and warned the people to prepare to meet their God.

      One of the key verses in Amos is 5:24—But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream! (NIV)—a command the nations need to obey today.

      A SUGGESTED OUTLINE OF THE BOOK OF AMOS

      Theme: A call for justice, a warning of judgments

      Key verse: Amos 5:24

      I. Look Around and See God’s Judgment (Amos 1—2)

      Eight nations judged

      A. Six Gentile nations condemned (Amos 1:1—2:3)

      B. Judah condemned (Amos 2:4–5)

      C. Israel condemned (Amos 2:6–16)

      II. Look within and See the Corruption (Amos 3—6)

      Three sermons to the people of Israel

      A. Message #1: Israel’s judgment certain (Amos 3:1–15)

      B. Message #2: Israel’s sins denounced (Amos 4:1–13)

      C. Message #3: Israel’s doom lamented (Amos 5:1—6:14)

      III. Look Ahead and See the End Coming (Amos 7—9)

      A. Five visions of judgment (Amos 7:1—9:10)

      1. The locusts (Amos 7:1–3)

      2. The fire (Amos 7:4–6)

      3. The plumb line (Amos 7:7–9)

      Historical interlude: Amos at Bethel (Amos 7:10–17)

      4. The basket of summer fruit (Amos 8:1–14)

      5. The ruined temple (Amos 9:1–10)

      B. A vision of the glorious kingdom (Amos 9:11–15)

      Chapter One

      The Lion Roars!

      (Amos 1—2)

      If the prophet Amos were to come to our world today, he would probably feel very much at home; for he lived at a time such as ours, when society was changing radically. Both Israel and Judah were at peace with their neighbors, which meant that their wealth and energy could be used for developing their nations instead of fighting their enemies. Both kingdoms were prosperous; their cities were expanding rapidly; and a new wealthy merchant class was developing in society. The two kingdoms were moving from an agricultural to a commercial society and experiencing both the benefits and problems that come with that change.

      However, in spite of their material success, all was not well with God’s chosen people. They were experiencing what the British poet Oliver Goldsmith wrote about back in 1770:

      Ill fares the land, to hast’ning ills a prey,

      Where wealth accumulates, and men decay …¹

      There were ills aplenty in all the lands of that day, the Gentile nations as well as the Jewish kingdoms of Israel and Judah; and Amos wasn’t afraid to name them. He opened his book with a denunciation of the sins of six Gentile nations, and no doubt the people of Israel and Judah applauded his words. Nothing would make the Jews happier than to see the Lord judge the surrounding nations. But when Amos denounced Judah and Israel, that was a different story; and his popularity began to suffer at that point.

      JUDGMENT ON THE GENTILE NATIONS (

      1:2—2:3)²

      God wanted to get the nations’ attention, but people weren’t listening. You’d think they could hear a lion roar or the thunder roll and know that danger was at hand. God was speaking (thundering) from Jerusalem, for judgment always begins at the house of the Lord (1 Peter 4:17). He had sent drought to the land so that even fruitful Carmel was withering, but it didn’t bring the people to their knees. So God called a common farmer to preach to His people and warn them. A lion has roared! Who will not fear? The Lord GOD has spoken! Who can but prophesy? (Amos 3:8 NKJV).

      Eight times Amos used the phrase for three transgressions and for four, a Jewish idiom that means an indefinite number that has finally come to the end. God is longsuffering with sinners (2 Peter 3:9), but He marks what they do, and His patience eventually runs out. To try God’s patience is to tempt the Lord; and when we tempt the Lord, we invite judgment.

      Syria (vv. 3–15). Damascus was the capital of Syria, one of the Jews’ persistent enemies. Amos denounced the Syrians for their inhuman treatment of the Israelites who lived in Gilead, east of the Jordan River. They cruelly threshed them as though they were nothing but stalks of grain. God had called the Syrians to punish Israel (2 Kings 10:32–33; 13:1–9), but the Syrians had carried it too far.

      The man who began his prayer with Lord, no doubt You saw in the morning newspaper … was stating a great truth in a clumsy way: God sees how the nations treat one another, and He responds appropriately. Benjamin Franklin said it well at the Constitutional Convention: I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth—that God governs in the affairs of men.³

      The phrase I will send a fire (Amos 1:4, 7, 10, 12, 14; 2:2, 5) means I will send judgment; for fire represents the holiness and judgment of God (Deut. 4:11, 24, 36; Heb. 12:29). Indeed, the Lord did judge Syria: the dynasty of King Hazael ended; his son Ben-Hadad was defeated; Damascus lost its power (business was done at the city gate, Amos 1:5); and the house of Eden (delight, paradise) became a ruin. King Josiah defeated Ben-Hadad three times (2 Kings 13:25), but it was the Assyrians who finally subdued Syria and took them into captivity.

      Philistia (vv. 6–8). Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron were the five key Philistine cities (Josh. 13:3), and Amos denounced all of them for trading in human lives.⁴ They raided Jewish villages and captured people to be sold as slaves. To add insult to injury, the Philistines sold these slaves to Israel’s ancient enemy, the Edomites. Since Edom was descended from Esau, Jacob’s brother, it was a case

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